Harvest

As darkness gave way to light again, Nan Fusheng slowly rose from the metal cabinet, only to hear a loud shout by his ear. "Xie Xie!"

The light around him was somewhat dazzling, making him squint instinctively as he turned his head to look around.

He saw Zhang Yangzi, Wang Jinxi whose body was twitching slightly, and Gu Yue sitting there with a somewhat pale face. There were also two other opened metal cabinets beside them.

He saw Tang Wulin spring out of a metal cabinet and practically race over to another one.

"Xie Xie! Xie Xie!" Tang Wulin kept calling out anxiously.

"I-I'm fine. It just hurts a lot." Xie Xie's somewhat hoarse voice rang out. He then opened his eyes and slowly rose from the metal cabinet.

With Nan Fusheng's support, he had not actually suffered any serious injuries. However, he had expended a great deal of stamina in the Spirit Ascension Platform, and those sensations were transmitted to his Brain, making him feel as if he had truly fought a great battle. His entire body felt weak.

Only after seeing him open his eyes did Tang Wulin finally let out a sigh of relief. Intense fatigue, along with the suffocating feeling caused earlier by Crystallization, surged over him once more. His legs gave out, and he dropped onto the floor.

Long Hengxu and Wu Changkong stood nearby. Wu Changkong still wore his cold expression, devoid of any emotion, while Long Hengxu's eyes had long since filled with shock.

The Spirit Pagoda staff member said sincerely, "Promising talents—truly promising talents! Are you sure these children are only nine years old?"

The staff member's gaze was somewhat fervent, especially when he looked at Nan Fusheng, Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Gu Yue.

He had witnessed all four of their performances just now.

Without a doubt, Nan Fusheng and Tang Wulin had been the most stunning.

Nan Fusheng's bizarre Spirit Skill had undoubtedly been immensely useful. He had been able to firmly control a hundred-year Bipedal Horned Dragon until its death, leaving it unable to put up any resistance.

He had even been able to restrain the Millennium-Level Crystal Bear for quite some time, creating an opportunity for his teammates to kill it. In the end, while surrounded and attacked by the wolf pack, he had calmly assessed the situation. Several times, when the wolves were nearly upon him,

he had been able to calmly control distant Green Wolves and prevent them from releasing Wind Blades. How much trust in his teammates did that require?

As for Tang Wulin, the Golden Dragon Claw his right hand had transformed into clearly possessed formidable attack power beyond his own strength.

Killing a hundred-year Bipedal Horned Dragon in one strike was one thing, but the Millennium-Level Crystal Bear's defensive power was not something a hundred-year Bipedal Horned Dragon could compare to.

Even knowing its weakness, that weak point's defense was still impressive. Even an Assault System Soul Elder would not dare claim they could kill it in a single strike, yet Tang Wulin had done it.

Gu Yue's performance had been equally praiseworthy. Her coordination with the other three had been seamless, and every instance of elemental control had been perfectly timed, especially her simultaneous use of several elemental abilities.

At the final moment, in order to keep Tang Wulin from being injured, she had used her own body to bear a crushing blow of nearly a thousand jin.

The Spirit Pagoda staff member knew very well that under those circumstances, a person's Brain would not have had time to consider whether it was illusion or reality. Gu Yue appearing beneath Tang Wulin at the first instant meant that even in reality, she would have done the same without hesitation.

They were only a few nine-year-old children! If their bond could reach such a level, how could their teamwork not be seamless?

No wonder, no wonder Eastsea Academy had spared no expense to send them here. They had not spent long in the Spirit Ascension Platform, but this experience would undoubtedly have an enormous effect on them.

The last child had been the same. To protect his companions, he had refused to lose heart even when he knew he was outmatched. Several times, when faced with the Green Wolves' encirclement,

he had calmly chosen a single point to break through, completely exposing his back. That had not been recklessness—it was because he trusted his teammates to create an opportunity for him to break out of the encirclement.

At the same time, he had managed to minimize his own injuries while attacking and wounding the enemy. He had already done very well.

At least among Spirit Masters entering the Spirit Ascension Platform for the first time, this Spirit Pagoda staff member had almost never seen anyone so outstanding. Not to mention, these children only had one or two rings.

Wu Changkong slowly walked over to the six of them and said blandly, "From today onward, the six of you are a combat team. Captain: Tang Wulin. Vice Captain: Nan Fusheng. Let's go."

With that, he took the lead toward the elevator.

The six exchanged glances, all wearing somewhat stunned expressions. A team?

Zhang Yangzi's expression was somewhat ugly, but he was even more ashamed. If he had still harbored a competitive spirit before coming here, then after personally witnessing everything that had happened in the Spirit Ascension Platform, his desire to compete had completely vanished.

Leaving aside individual strength, his own response in the Spirit Ascension Platform had already been far inferior to theirs.

Whether it was Nan Fusheng, who could calmly control the entire situation and restrain a millennium-level Soul Beast, or Tang Wulin, who had slain the Millennium-Level Crystal Bear in one strike and possessed such formidable attack power,

or Gu Yue, who had willingly acted as a cushion, or Xie Xie, who had fought to the death without retreating for his companions—every one of them had performed admirably. Compared to them, his and Wang Jinxi's performances had been utterly terrible.

If Jinxi's actions could still be excused, considering he had encountered an incredibly powerful Soul Beast, then what about himself? He had practically been courting death!

On the way back, all six remained immersed in their Spirit Ascension Platform journey from that day. Zhang Yangzi was filled with regret, while Nan Fusheng kept replaying the entire battle in his mind, pondering the conditions within the Spirit Ascension Platform.

But without question, their first battle in the Spirit Ascension Platform had greatly affected every one of them.

Nan Fusheng felt it especially deeply. So this was what fighting Soul Beasts felt like! This was what it was like to battle Soul Beasts.

Although he was already Sequence 5, he had never experienced actual combat before. Aolai City was still very peaceful.

Actual combat in a place like this truly produced far better results than ordinary training. After all, he had rarely engaged in this kind of direct battle before, so he could treat it as accumulating experience in advance.

The journey back to the academy was peaceful, but because his Soul Spirit was evolving, Tang Wulin remained in a dazed state. Wu Changkong therefore personally took Tang Wulin back to his dormitory.

He did not give them any further instructions, merely telling everyone to disperse and return to their dormitories to cultivate.

The moment Nan Fusheng returned to his dormitory, he began cultivating. To be frank, Tang Wulin appeared to have gained the most that day. Not only had he gained experience fighting Soul Beasts, but his Soul Spirit had also evolved.

Nan Fusheng had likewise gained experience fighting Soul Beasts, but aside from that, he had gained nothing else. At most, he had received the title of Vice Captain. Even Xie Xie had at least absorbed the Spirit Power of a hundred-year Soul Beast.

But none of that mattered to Nan Fusheng. After all, there would be plenty of chances to enter the Spirit Ascension Platform in the future. What Nan Fusheng had gained most that day was the Time Worm's parasitism of Soul Beasts.

Unlike parasitizing humans, Nan Fusheng discovered that perhaps because those Soul Beasts existed in a virtual state? Or perhaps because they were Soul Spirits?

In any case, Nan Fusheng discovered that if he wanted to use Deep Parasitism on those Soul Beasts, he only needed to expend a single Time Worm.